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Brilliant healthier way of cooking those 'naughty' foods!

Like most people i do love the odd bit of fried food but i'm an absolute smell-ophobe and refuse to cook or use anything in my house that will make it smell.

I first found out about this product after reading people raving about it online and immediately asked my husband if we should buy one. He was a little aprehensive at first - thought it would be a waste of money - but we quickly proved that wasn't the case and its worth every penny.

To start with i must say that the actifry isn't a 'quick' way of cooking. It will take around 30-40 minutes to cook a batch of chips for 2 people but this is to be expected as you are only using a spoon of oil.The taste of the chips is divine! Such a massive difference compare to cooking oven chips for the past years!I must admit i do only use it to cook chips and haven't tried it with anything else yet but i am looking to try things like fish fingers, nuggets etc.

It comes with a recipe book full of new things to try and cook in it! Some of them look absolutely delicious so i'm looking forward to trying those.

The machine is SO easy to clean!!! The pan and lid are easy to remove and wash - its clean in minutes!

My only downside for this product is the timer. It's so quiet!!! I can barely hear it going off and it doesn't automatically stop when its finished so i would place a timer on your phone aswell so you don't forget to go and switch it off!

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A wonderful, totally fool proof product.

This has changed the way I cook. It's a brilliantly versatile product that can do much more than just chips! It's perfect for vegetables, for meat, and even for desserts.

It's dead easy to use. Just chop up your veg, put in a spoonful of oil (the spoon is even provided!), set the timer and leave the room. It automatically stops cooking when the time is up and simply keeps the food warm. It's fool proof!

It's also very, very easy to cook. The parts detach easily so you can get at every nook and cranny, and they go back on just as easily. The surface is stick free and I've never had any problems with stubborn bits of food. In fact, the timer facility means there's no reason why anything would ever burn on anyway.

There are a few disadvantages - it's marketed as a deep fat fryer replacements and it certainly manages this when it comes to chips (which take around 45 minutes). But if you're feeding a family it won't manage to replace the things you fry along with those chips - battered fish, scotch eggs etc.

It's also a little noisier than expected, although it's not as loud as an extractor fan for example. On the other hand, it's not loud enough - at least the beeper that let's you know when the time is up isn't! If the ActiFry is in another room it can be quite hard to find - although at least it just keeps the food warm even if you forget about it.

Also note that (perhaps unsurprisingly) the top and sides can get quite hot - so watch out if you have toddlers!

Give it a try - you definitely won't regret it! I used it tonight: sweet potato, carrots, onions, spuds all thrown in. You do need to experiment with timings a bit, but other than that it's hassle free and totally delicious.

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It's a 'must have' for my kitchen

I love this appliance.I bought one when they first came out about four years ago. I have had two break down on me after around a year, but they were the original, smaller ones.I bought the large family sized one about eighteen months ago and chose to go with the additional insurance via Argos. For £13 for three years, I felt it was a good choice in case the motor burned out again (which is what happened to my previous two machines) I think the motor burned out because I overloaded the pan :-(I use my Actifry at least three times a week - cooking chips, roast potatoes and other veg, stir frying vegetables or meat.I particularly like the fact that there are no fat smells around the house after cooking chips. It's great to be able to switch it on and walk away, without the worry of watching a pan of boiling oil in case it bursts into flames.With the price of potatoes these days, it's good to be able to buy a bag of cheap frozen three way cook chips chuck them in the Actifry with a tablespoon of oil and maybe some spices (curry powder is good), cook for about 25 to 30 minutes, depending on how brown you like your chips, walk away and when the buzzer goes, turn them out ready to eat.We eat potato with most meals - 'chips' are very popular in our house, but they have the downside of being fat laden - with the Actifry, there's no such worry. One tablespoon or less of oil is less than the butter you'd use to mash potatoes or the fat you'd use to roast them.The recipe book that accompanies the Actifry gives you lots of ideas for things like stir frys, curries and the like. You need to read the book to see how best to prepare each type of food for cooking - for instance, onions are best sliced into rings rather than chopped or diced.The final word of recommendation comes from my son, who is moving out to buy his own home in the next few weeks - his only request is 'Could you buy me an Actifry as a housewarming present?" Most definitely I will - and with the extra insurance in case of a breakdown!

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Great for a healthy way of cooking 'fried' food

I have had this fryer for some months now. I was a bit dubious at first as I had read some bad reviews about it breaking down quickly and obviously, it is quite an expensive purchase.

I have to say, I haven't had any problems with it and it has been well used. Like most kitchen appliances, it does get 'messy' very quickly. I really try to clean it well after each use but it quickly gets a coating of grease that is difficult to remove. There are a number of removable pieces so it is possible to soak some parts.

As far as food goes, we do tend to use it for chips! I have tried sausages but find they split and break up easily and I did try scampi but ended up with prawns and a lots of loose breadcrumbs!

Chips are great (can't pretend they are as good as 'chippy' chips) but they are nice and crisp and fluffy inside. I prefer homemade but it is easy to sometimes just tip in a bag of frozen and both work equally well. We usually have 4 to cater for and can easily cook enough in one go.

Its amazing how little oil you need and for this reason alone I would definitely say give it a go!

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Worth the money, super healthy

I have always had a deep fat fryer in my house, so when my old one was on its last legs a year ago, I decided to opt for the tefal fryer. You only need 1 small spoon of oil to do a whole bunch of chips! So great for the waistline, and they still taste great! There is only two of us living in our house, so its plenty big enough for us. I imagine if you had 2 or 3 children, you may struggle to cook enough chips for the lot of you, but that isn't an issue for us. I have recommended this fryer to all my friends and family and a few of tbem have bought it and are just as impressed as we are. We used to have to limit how much food we fried each week, for health reasons, but now with this guilt free fryer we don't have to think about that as much.

The fryer is very eash to clean as the bits needed to wash in the dishwasher can be easily removed.

Another good point is that this fryer doesnt produce that awful fatty smell around your house that normal deep fat fryers do.

Some bad points are that it is a little noisy and on the pricey side, but I still think its worth buying.

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healthy food cooked quick and easily

I bought my tefal Actifry last year and would not part with it. It can be used to cook healthy meals and mine came with a healthy cookery book.As well as cooking healthy chips it can also be ised to cook frozen food, poultry, fish, pasta to name a few.You only need one spoon of oil in a spoon provided.Its very easy to clean as well as it all unclips so you can wash all parts and its easy to put back together as well.Well worth the money.The cokery book provided gives recipes from around the world starting with potatoes around the world giving nutrition infomation. Did you know potatoes give you an energy boost because of their carbohydrate content. The book provided with my Actifry shows the protein, fat and carbohydrate per serving.The recipe for east coast Canadian clam chowder made in the Actifry is very goodBest item I ever bought love it.

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Excellent product, well worth the money.

I have recently purchased the Tefal Actifry in an effort to produce food healthier and have been extremely happy with the results so far. Although the literature for the product states that a spoon of oil is required, it cooks frozen food without the need of any oil. So far I have managed to cook frozen chips, spring rolls and samosas without oil and they have cooked consistently and thoroughly cooked. I have also managed to cook roasted potatoes in the Tefal Actifry with a spoon of oil and the results were fantastic, the outer layer was crisp but the insides were fluffy and very tasty. Although frozen foods cook well, I would not recommend using the Tefal Actifry to cook any softer foods such as burgers as the rotating mechanism can mash them when cooking. However, the majority of foods cook extremely well and I am delighted with the results.

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perfection when it comes to frying

Fair play to this fryer if you like deep fried food but are aware of the potential health implications of that kind of high fat diet then look no further this piece of revolutionary kit may set you back a fair penny but once you take the dive and own one you will immediately start realising the benefits as this lowvfat fryer uses only a table spoon of fat to cook your chips or other fried foods. Yes thats right gone are the days of filling the fryer with 2 litres of fat now this revolutionary design from tefal allows for the fat to be heated vaporised coating and lubricating the food inside and cooking it to perfection via electric induction fans which blow hot air which cooks the food. A lot healthier than the alternative and a lot more economical. Ideal for cooking chips, fish, sausages, chicken , battered mars bars and whatever you would cook in your normal fryer. Perfection!

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a recommended buy, to change from deep fat fryer to this

Bought this product a year ago, and am so pleased that I did. Used to cook oven chips which were always difficult to cook just right. never owned a fat fryer before as the idea of the smell and the oil didn't appeal. however, decided to purchase a tefal actifry and have never looked back. use just one tablespoon of oil, or butter/margarine, and use the timer facility. you don't need to keep checking that they're cooking all over, you can just switch it on and leave it to its own devices. no smell, no mess, perfect chips every time. Just wipe with a piece of kitchen towel and wash up. no more greasy mess, odours or uneven cooked chips. you can even cook vegetables and other foods in it, although I still have to be brave enough to try out anything other than good old fashioned home cooked chips.

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Good product for chip lovers

We've owned our actifry for around 8 months now, when we bought it I think it was around £140, I've seen it for sale for around £120 recently. The actifry's biggest selling point is because it only uses 1 spoon of oil to cook with. We do like chips in our house but my partner likes them in the deep fat fryer and I preferred them in the oven so were both pleased with the actifry because we now both prefer chips cooked using the actrifry. There is a paddle in the centre which spins around to help move the food around and cooks it evenly. I like the chips in for around 20 minutes but my partners likes them in for around 45 minutes which makes them crispier. You can cook more than just chips in the actifry but the only other things I've cooked in it is Jacket potatoes to help crispen the skin and bacon.

AdvantagesThe chips taste delicious and no one would know they were 'healthy' chips. Its really easy to use the actifry and just as easy to clean it. The part which holds your food completely comes out so its easy to pour the food on your plate and easy to clean with the rest of the washing up. The paddle comes out too so food like jacket potatoes which doesn't need stirring you don't need the paddle in then the paddle can easily be cleaned too. You don't need to pre-heat it like an oven, it heats up instantly but the outside is cool to touch so you don't need to worry about children burning themselves on it. It hols up to 1kg which is enough chips for a family of 4 but of course if there's more than 4 of you then it would be a problem.

DisadvantagesThe actifry is quite large and can take up a lot of space in the kitchen amongst all the other kitchen appliances we all have. There are cupboards all above the worktops in my kitchen so the actifry is underneath cupboards which means when I open it the lid which opens upwards, it wont open all the way as it hits the cupboard so I have to keep pulling it forward to use then push back after I've used it. To open the lid you have to push the buttons on the front which makes the lid pop open, the lid pops open very quick and I try to get hold off it straight away as I think the spring will break quite quickly where it keeps popping open. It has a timer on top so you can set it up for how ever long you want and leave it then it beeps when finished which I do like except for the fact of it carries on cooking even when its beeped anyway rather than turning off which I would prefer so even when its beeped you still have to go turn it off yourself anyway. If you think the foods cooked enough but there is still some time left on you can stop it and turn it off but yet the timer still goes on till the end then it starts beeping, even if its turned off at the wall and everything, it still beeps until the timers up. The actifry is quite noisy so if you have an open plan kitchen and living room it will be very noisy to have to listen to when in use. You can buy deep fat fryers for under £20 so to have to pay an extra £100 for the acrtifry to make chips means you are eating very expensive chips.

Overall I do really like the actifry but there are so many kitchen appliances we all have now its just another thing taking up space. If they weren't so expensive I think a lot more people would use them but it does have a large price tag when a lot of people would only use it for chips. I would recommend it but more so if they were only around £50.

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Great addition to the kitchen.

I love this gadget, it gets used nearly every day in this house. We mainly use it to make chips and occasionally wedges (sweet potato chips especially are a hit). We have also cooked chicken in it before but we primarily bought it because we're not keen on oven chips and wanted to make our own home made chips but in a healthy way. We ummed and ahhed about getting a deep fat fryer but re definitely don't regret forking out for one of these!

It's really easy to use, and comes with a cute little recipe book with some great and healthy ideas. It seems to be a very versatile appliance which can be used to cook a variety of dishes. It comes with a little green measuring spoon which is handy, especially when following the recipe from the book it comes with As I mentioned earlier we are not the most adventurous of people and so tend to just stick to cooking home made chips and wedges, we've had the appliance for over 6months now and over that time has been used quite vigorously but we have yet to come across any issues with it.

It's easy to keep clean but not very easy to keep looking clean, the see through plastic has become somewhat smeared over time and no amount of scrubbing seems to get it looking like new again, that is purely a cosmetic issue though and not a reflection on how the Actifry performs as a whole.

Overall I am super pleased with this product and we honestly wouldn't be without it now. It's become a vital part of the kitchen, It can be quite noisy but that doesn't really bother us. I can't imagine cooking chips any other way!

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Great addition to the kitchen!

I was quite lucky to get my Actifry for free! My Mum bought one and then upgraded it to an air fryer almost straight away - handing the 'old' one down to me at the same time.

For anyone who hasn't seen one of these it's basically a cooking implement which cooks many different food types using very little or no oil, in order to try and achieve a fried taste without all the fat. The main thing I cook in mine is chips but there is a wide range of dishes which can be prepared in the Actifry.The shape/size of the Actifry is slightly bulky and awkward in my small kitchen, but this is pretty much the only negative I can think of. There's a round bit where you put the food and then an extra part that sticks out which has buttons on it. There are only two buttons so it's very easy to operate. There's an on/off button and a timer button. When you press the timer button it counts up in minutes and a screen shows how many minutes you have set it for. It then makes a beeping sound when it gets to zero, letting you know your food is ready!

As I said, I mainly use mine for chips, and they turn out pretty tasty.

In order to make yummy Actifry chips I do as follows:

* Peel potatoes and cut into chips of the desired thickness (I usually opt for 'fries' so quite thin cut but you can go for chunky chips or wedges if you prefer)* I then dry the potato out as much as possible to make the chips crispier* Then put them in the Actifry and use the provided spoon to measure out the oil. I think it's a tablespoon amount but I'm not 100% sure - it's just a green plastic spoon that comes with it. The oil just gets poured on top and then the lid is shut and just press 'on' (using the timer function if desired). There is a kind of lever which turns around slowly, moving the contents and ensuring they are cooked evenly* I normally do chips for 25 minutes but depending on how crispy you like them and how thick you cut them you can vary this!

The section of the Actifry which the food goes in is removable and has a handle so you can lift this bit out to empty your food out onto plates and then that part can be easily washed and returned to the rest of the unit.

The chips it produces are hardly the naughtiest tasting thing in the world and they're not quite chip shop chips but they are really tasty and definitely worth making to save on the calories and fat that other chips normally carry!

Sometimes I don't even use the oil and just go for Frylight instead (1 cal spray) and give the potatoes a good spray with this before cooking to save even more fat.

Chips are not all that can be cooked in the Actifry...other things include most frozen things that you would normally but in the oven such as chicken nuggets, risotto, various veg (butternut squash is a favourite for me), and 100's more things but these are the main things I use it for. It comes with a recipe book but I find a bit of experimenting works well too.

I also find that flavouring works well in the Actifry. Because of the fact that it moves around constantly during cooking in order to get an even cook, it's also good for evenly distributing flavours amongst the food. I often sprinkle smoked paprika on chips/veg or add herbs/spices to dishes.My mum purchased this from Tesco but it's also available in a lot of places both online and in shops (including Amazon, most Supermarkets and places like Curry's).

Prices vary a lot but last time I looked they were around the £100 mark. However various offers and general price changes obviously affect this.

As I said it is quite big and bulky but it gets quite a lot of use so it's worth taking up that extra kitchen space!

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One of the best things I have ever bought

I don't think when people get startled by the price tag that comes with this item, they really realise the versatility of this wonderful machine. It is on the bulky side, in width rather than height, and does take a little accommodating in the kitchen, but even for those who don't normally fry, it's worth the effort and every single penny.

The acti-fry is dead easy to use, though does come with a handy list of instructions! You set the weight of your produce, which then determines the time, and away you go. It'll do anything from crisps, to stir frys, to frying meat, right the way to doing traditional fish and chips. All with the reduced fat content. It keeps food lovely and crisp, but more importantly, healthy.

The only issue I've had with my machine is the *beep* when it finishes the time it is set for isn't quite loud enough for me to hear from the other side of my kitchen. It doesn't automatically switch off, which can be a problem. It may just be me, or my machine. But other than that it's a real kitchen staple.

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Great product for fast families leading fast lives

This machine is brilliant and so versatile and yet one of my most used items,Before I got a cooker I was making my meals with various gadgets about the kitchen, microwave, stack steamer ect.. Then this beauty came into my life.Last week I needed something crispy with my sandwich.Then I had an idea, I used my tefal slice & greater machine to slice up 3 new potatoes into thin slices and then I dropped them into a food bag with cracked peppercorns and rock salt and a little olive oil, tied the bag and worked the oil and seasoning around the potato slices till all is covered.Then i break open the bag and tipped them in the air fryer.15-20 mins later i had some fresh seasoned crunchy crisps at the side of my sandwich.It is easy to clean with little effort and becomes a fast easy way to make a hot snack.It's very easy to set the timer and the machine is safe, because when you open up the fryer it powers down.Great for large families who wants to cook sausages or chicken nuggets from the freezer because everything is cooked throughout leaving you low risk of eating raw product.Also this is a very healthy way to enjoy your favourite foods without drenching it in lots of fats.

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A really good fryer/cooking unit.

After my deep fat fryer finally died, i managed about two months before realising i needed a replacement....quickly!

After a peruse at my local electricals store i was pleased to find that the holy grail of fryers (in my opinion anyway!) was at that time being sold for half price (£90.00), with even an extended warranty being sold half price, which i promptly purchased!

My Mum in law had had an Actifry for a good year before i could afford one, and raved about hers constantly, not only due to how delicious the chips were that she made in it, but also the fact it could be used to make whole meals, one pot style with hardly any fat needing to be added.

I initially tried chips when i had mine, which, whilst i enjoyed the chips, my son really didn't, so took him a little longer to start eating them (which he did eventually!).

The set itself was a lot bigger and heavier than i was expecting, taking up a good portion of my limited counter space in my kitchen, and it was too heavy and too tall to fit comfortably into a cupboard, so if this was to go the same way as many of my other "must have" items, i would struggle finding somewhere to store it!

In the unit itself there is a detachable pan with a handle, this is where all the food is cooked, and is coated in a non-slip covering, so care has to be taken when removing food from the pan and also when washing it up.

In the centre of the pan is a hole where a detachable arm is fixed into, this constantly rotates around, keeping the food moving which i feel is one of the reasons it takes so little time for the food to be cooked through.

This again needs careful cleaning, as there are a few nooks and crannies that can accumulate fat into, and does!

The unit is really easy to use, with there being a multitude of food that can be cooked, fresh and frozen, with chips being the first thing i cooked, the instruction booklet explains the best way to wash, dry and cut the chips up, and gives you optimum cooking times (which can be timed using the timer on the top of the unit), though have since found cooks just as effectively without the rinsing of the startch off, and the timing, i find i can tell how close they are to be cooked by the look of them!

I have since gone on to cooking chicken pieces (though if you like crispy skin this is not the best way as the arm seems to strip the skin off), bacon, ham, pepperoni etc... and have found that they all cook much quicker, and without me having to stand over them turning them in the pan by hand!

I find that frozen chips, sausages, onion rings, potato letters etc, cook beautifully in this unit, and though it does say you don't need to add extra fat to these as they have fat in them for oven cooking, they do taste a little nicer with a little dribble of oil before cooking!

There is a full list of items that you can cook in the actifry, along with a substantial recipe book, with recipes from around the world, though I do find I use this on regular basis, I do tend to use for the same sort of food, normally potato based (chips, wedges, roast potato's etc...) or for sausages, or meat portions.

How the unit actually works is quite simple, yet very effective. There is a small element under the far side of the lid, which blows hot air out of, so when the arm turns the food constantly, the food is getting equal amounts of the hot air cooking it quickly and thoroughly, with the recommended amount of oil to be used (quantities outlined within the instruction booklet, but usually around the 5-10ml line, measuring spoon included!), not feeling as if it would be enough, but of course is!

Due to the method of cooking the unit does get extremely hot, so I tend to have to get it out of children and dogs reach, with me even burning myself a few times, forgetting that it's hot air that cooks the food and just flipping the lid open, then wondering why the unit scorches my hands!

I have already mentioned cleaning, but it is worth mentioning that although the pan and arm are removable, and can be cleaned in hot soapy water (not sure if it is dishwashable, as I am the only dish washer in my house!), the filter under the pan should be regularly cleaned as it can get bunged up, especially with any herbs or spices you may use in your cooking.And (as with deep fat fryers), no matter how hard to try, you will always get a layer of grease on the unit and fittings, I recently had to take my original unit back to the store and was mortified that I had had the arm in soak and scrubbed on and off for a weekend, and still had to take it back with a thin layer of fat on, though the assistant wasn't fazed at all!

Any downsides, well from the previous statement you will have gathered that this is actually my second unit in 18 months, though I feel that it was a freak thing that happened (the arm snapped off the central rotor), though due to the extended warranty I took out when I purchased the unit (£22.00 for three years, new for old, no questions asked!), I was able to have a newer unit straight away, though wasn't impressed with the manager telling me repeatedly that I was lucky he had allowed me to swop, as it was at his discretion to do so, which I thoroughly enjoyed putting him straight on!

This has been a really good unit, and I have actually used this on an almost daily basis, when the arm incident happened I had to go a week without it and felt lost, so this (unlike so many of my other must have items) has actually been money well spent!

Availability is widespread, with this being purchased from Currys, though do shop around as at full price (£199!), I would really have been hard pushed to buy at that price!